1. The Union of a Girl in Pieces and a Vampire

Author: Kiki
Raw: https://novel18.syosetu.com/n2498fn/1/
Translator: Lilia v4
Editor: Yuriko AYA

Continue reading →

2. I Discover My First Love in a Trash Heap

Author: Kiki
Raw: https://novel18.syosetu.com/n2498fn/2/
Translator: Lilia v4
Editor: Yuriko AYA

When I came to, I had returned to life and was lying in what looked like a garbage dump.
I noticed something strange the moment I stood up.
I could see through both eyes. I had all my fingers, too.
There were no scars on my body, nor any stiffness in my facial muscles.
What was more, my body felt unnaturally light, as though I were no longer myself.
I searched for something I might use as a mirror to inspect what had happened to me, but found nothing nearby.
With no other choice, I left the dump, passed through a place resembling a sewer, climbed a ladder, and emerged outside—
There I found a bleak townscape like the European slums depicted in my history textbooks.
Perhaps because the rain had just stopped, the air was thick with the smell of rotting food.
I climbed out through a manhole-like opening, instinctively found the sunlight beating down from above “unpleasant,” and retreated into the shade.
When I looked into a puddle there, I saw my reflection for the first time.
Though filthy, I had finely textured white skin like silk, red eyes, and sharp canine teeth.
My hair was still black, my face had not changed, and I was even wearing the same school uniform. And yet—had I always been this beautiful? The thought welled up inside me.
That would have been utterly impossible if I were still myself.
It seemed the change had reached not only my appearance, but my mind as well.

“I am…”

—Chigusa Hinata.
I clearly remembered that name, along with every memory of my life underfoot.
But my body was something else entirely.
In short, my conversation with the girl who called herself a vampire had not been a dream. It had truly happened.
She and I had become one, and in doing so, we had survived.
As a half-vampire.

So that was why I had instinctively avoided the sun. Satisfied with that explanation but still curious, I stepped out of the shade and into the sunlight once more.
It felt as though my skin were slowly scorching.
And yet there was not enough pain or injury to declare that “vampires are vulnerable to sunlight.”
Was that because I was half human, or were true vampires simply not as vulnerable to sunlight as the stories claimed?

“More importantly… where am I?” Continue reading →

3. The Girls’ Fatal Union

Author: Kiki
Raw: https://novel18.syosetu.com/n2498fn/3/
Translator: Lilia v4
Editor: Yuriko AYA

Dinner consisted of scraps scavenged from the town’s rubbish bins and misshapen vegetables of uncertain origin bought at the black market.
Perhaps because I had gone along to forage for food, Ellis laughed and said, “We found more than usual today.”
The moment we returned to her room, she happily began eating.
Strangely, I was not hungry, so I declined the meal and watched Ellis contentedly stuff her cheeks with vegetables.
Presently, she stopped eating and looked at me.
There was something oddly endearing about the gesture. When I smiled without thinking, Ellis’s cheeks reddened slightly, and she promptly resumed her meal.

“You look very happy when you eat.”
“Living like this every day, eating’s about the only pleasure I’ve got.”
“Life in the Discard District must be difficult.”

Light and shadow. Glory and decline.
The city of Groll, not far from the Discard District, was extraordinarily prosperous by comparison.
That said, its technology appeared to lag considerably behind that of modern Japan, so I suppose it would still be considered developing.
Its inhabitants could enjoy such abundance precisely because they turned their eyes from anything inconvenient and drove it into a forgotten corner.
But those things would continue to swell until the day came when they could no longer look away.
I sensed instinctively that this castle of accumulated refuse—the Discard District—was the shape that reckoning had taken.

“Still, are you sure you don’t want anything to eat, Chigusa? It helps me out, but still.”
“I do not mind. I never ate much to begin with. Missing a single meal does not trouble me.”
“And you’re that strong, too. Where in the world do you get the energy?”

I wondered the same thing, though I could feel something welling up from the very depths of my body.
Presumably, that was the force sustaining me now that I was half vampire.
But I did not know what it truly was.

“Ch-Chigusa, what’s gotten into you all of a sudden?” Continue reading →

5. Falling

Author: Kiki
Raw: https://novel18.syosetu.com/n2498fn/5/
Translator: Lilia v4
Editor: Yuriko AYA

 

After meeting up with Lyle, bringing our number to three, we continued along the fence until we stopped at a certain spot.
Here and only here, a hole had been opened in the fence.
I see. At last, I understood what they intended to do.
Going directly into the city to search would surely be more efficient than scavenging for scraps at the dump.
This fence had most likely been built to prevent the people of the Discard District from doing exactly that.

“Your name was Chigusa, right?”

Just before we crawled through the hole, Lyle spoke to me.

“You’re not from the Discard District, so you’ll be fine, but anyone can tell Ellis is from there just by looking at her clothes. If the guards find us, you run. No matter what. Got it?”
“Even if I could defeat them?”
“Don’t get too full of yourself. I don’t care how strong you are—you’re not beating an armed soldier.”

I did not feel that I would lose, but for now, I decided to nod obediently.
It would only be troublesome if he became suspicious of me.
And Ellis, please try not to glare at Lyle so much.
If he discovered the nature of our relationship, searching for food would become the least of our concerns.

Our conversation over, we got down on all fours, crawled through the hole, and emerged inside the city.
It was a back alley in every sense of the word. Perhaps there was a restaurant nearby, because several bags of rubbish had been left there.
Lyle immediately reached for one, undid the knot, and began rummaging through its contents.
There were even some nearly untouched vegetables inside, which could well constitute a feast for people like them.
While Lyle immersed himself in scavenging, Ellis brought her lips close to my ear and whispered.

“Let’s go over there.”

Unable to content herself until the two of us were alone, Ellis took my hand and silently led me away.
Lyle did not notice. He truly did seem to be obtuse through and through.
Having successfully slipped away, we turned a corner and proceeded deeper into the maze of alleys—until we reached a deserted spot.
Ellis appeared to have forgotten even her own hunger. She pressed herself against me like a female cat in heat.
When I playfully stroked beneath her chin, she obligingly mewed, “Mrrrow,” like a pet fawning on her master.
I continued, and before long her mewing turned to moans, her smile grew flushed with desire, and our gazes intertwined. Just as the mood was developing quite nicely—
An unpleasant intruder arrived to spoil it, much as I had expected.

“Well, what do we have here? The maggots from the Discard District have crawled in again.” Continue reading →

6. Today as Ever, the Light Shines Only to Be Defiled

Author: Kiki
Raw: https://novel18.syosetu.com/n2498fn/4/
Translator: Lilia v4
Editor: Yuriko AYA

That night, the rain fell with the force of a storm.
At times like these, being alone in this dim church left me feeling strangely lonely.
The childish thought would suddenly come to me—if only someone would visit—yet those were always the times when no one came.
Naturally. There was a downpour outside.
In my room, illuminated by a magical lamp, I turned the pages of my book, now and then casting an uneasy glance at the rain striking the window.
Rustle, rustle.
It was an oft-read novel about an aristocratic boy and girl who abandoned their stations to elope—a book existing solely as entertainment, of the sort no woman of the cloth ought to read.
Then again, I had never been an officially recognized nun in the first place.
I was merely a woman who had let herself into an abandoned church and taken it upon herself to call herself a nun.
It was hardly something to concern myself with now.

“Has the rainy season begun, I wonder?”

Now and then, a murmur escaped my lips to ward off the loneliness.
The temperature had risen of late, and I could feel summer drawing closer.
The height of summer, with its punishing sunlight, would soon be upon us—but before that came the rainy season, when rain like today’s drenched the ground day after day.
It was a depressing prospect.
The damp made food quick to mold and laundry slow to dry.
Above all, foul weather had a way of clouding people’s hearts as well.
I would no doubt receive more requests for counsel.
There was little sense in fretting now over a future that might never come to pass, but this pattern had held true without fail ever since I arrived at the church.
Experience could, at times, prove more reliable than any theory.

“I do hope it will be clear tomorrow …” Continue reading →

7. A Shadow Falls

Author: Kiki
Raw: https://novel18.syosetu.com/n2498fn/7/
Translator: Lilia v4
Editor: Yuriko AYA

After breakfast, we lingered at the table for a while, relaxing over cups of tea.
There was something I wished to ask them, and when the moment seemed right, I did so.

“Why did the two of you flee the Discard District?”
“I don’t know if you heard about it, Nunnally, but a soldier’s body was found in the city a little while ago, remember?”
“Yes. If I recall correctly, I heard that someone from the Discard District was found dead alongside him.”
“That was someone I knew. We got caught up in the whole mess, and when it looked like they were going to kill us, we ran.”

Hearing Ellis speak so casually of nearly being killed brought home to me once again that my understanding of the Discard District had not been mistaken.
Yet the blame also lay with the nobles who had sealed its people away and abandoned them without providing anyone to keep order, as well as with ordinary citizens like us. I could hardly despise them for what they had become.

“If you hadn’t taken us in, Nunnally, we might be dead by now. Seriously, thank you.”
“There is no need to thank me. I merely did my duty as a woman of the cloth.”

The way I said it with the face of a virtuous woman made me sick.
I had abandoned someone from the Discard District once before. Why could I not acknowledge my own wrongdoing? Why did I insist on carrying on this charade of being a good person?
When, to begin with—I was not even a true member of the clergy.

“Sister?”

I had become lost in my thoughts when Ellis’s voice, calling out to Chigusa, brought me back to reality.
I realized that Chigusa, who should have been sitting across from me, had vanished.
Before I could look to see where she had gone, she wrapped her arms around me from behind once more.
Her body felt cool against mine, yet beneath that coolness was the unmistakable pulse of life. It was a curious sensation.
Still holding me, she laid one palm over my hand.
Perhaps she had seen my expression and assumed that I was feeling dejected.
If so, she must simply have meant to comfort me, but I could not keep from remembering the events of the previous night.
Ellis’s moans spilling from their room—and Chigusa had been in there with her.

“Honestly, Sister, you really do love cuddling people.”
“You always smile when I do this, Ellis, so I thought it might make Nunnally smile as well. She looked so sad.”
“Did I truly look that way?”
“Yes. You were looking down so forlornly.”
“I…see. In that case, um, th-thank you. But I…”
“Are you unused to this sort of thing?” Continue reading →

8. Harboring Defilement

Author: Kiki
Raw: https://novel18.syosetu.com/n2498fn/8/
Translator: Lilia v4
Editor: Yuriko AYA

The next morning, the two women who appeared before me made no effort whatsoever to conceal the scent of lovemaking.
The red marks on their necks, their sweat-dampened skin, their dewy eyes—had they embraced the moment they woke, or had they not slept at all since the night before?

“Good morning, Nunnally.”

Chigusa was merely smiling and offering an ordinary greeting. Was I reading too much into it when I found her expression so alluring?
Even her red eyes seemed to seethe with the flames of desire.
Ashamed of the improper fantasies I had entertained the night before, I could not look her in the face and answered with my head bowed.

“G-Good morning …”

At the sight of me, Chigusa gave a soft laugh, sensuously touched an index finger to her lips, and smiled.
Then she walked over, spread her arms as she had the night before, and embraced me—and something soft and faintly moist brushed my cheek.
Surely that had not been … her lips?

“A morning greeting. Did it not please you?”

Seeing how bewildered and embarrassed I was, she whispered like a teasing little devil.

“No … It is not that.”

I could hardly admit that it had delighted me. Yet my heart was pounding so hard that there could be no concealing it.
Pressed this close together, surely Chigusa could feel both the heat of my body and the frantic beat of my heart through our clothes.

“Oh, Sister, you’re so unfair, keeping all the fun to yourself. I want to say good morning to Nunnally too, you know?”
“I do not recall taking anything from you. You may greet her as well, Ellis. You do not mind, do you, Nunnally?”

Before I could answer, Ellis wrapped herself around my arm and pressed her soft body against it through our clothes.
I became acutely conscious of the swell of her breast entwined with my arm.
Why should this make me feel such things when we were both women?
And yet, when I imagined Chigusa’s hands caressing the bare skin beneath those clothes the night before, it was impossible not to think about it.

“Morning, Nunnally.” Continue reading →

9. Do Not Look Inside the Moth Trap

Author: Kiki
Raw: https://novel18.syosetu.com/n2498fn/9/
Translator: Lilia v4
Editor: Yuriko AYA

The moment in which a person feels greatest happiness is not when they help someone, nor when someone expresses gratitude to them.
It is when they violate a taboo that they attain the summit of happiness.

Chigusa opened the door, and at last I stepped into the room.
Last night and the night before, I had only been permitted to listen from outside—to hear their voices as a bystander stranded upon an outer rim beyond all reach.
Now I was standing at their source.
That alone brought me such joy that I trembled, and yet I was about to become one of the participants as well.

“Haaaaah …”

I drew a long, deep breath, filling my chest with the sweet, tart fragrance that permeated the room.
It was a honeyed, elusive perfume in which the scents of Chigusa and Ellis mingled.
If merely breathing had this effect upon me, what would become of me if I buried my face in the bed?
I stopped in the middle of the room and stared fixedly at it. Chigusa, who had linked her arm through mine, whispered in my ear.

“Does the bed interest you that much?”
“Yes … When I think that I am about to take the stage there …”
“You look ready to lose your mind. Nunnally, you’re such a pervert.”
“But an honest Nunnally is much more endearing than one who forces herself to hold back.”
“Mm-hm. I think I like you better this way too.”
“Thank you.”

It was rather strange to thank them for such a thing, but I was too delighted not to.
There was nothing in this world I cherished more than praise from these two.
Yet now that I had actually entered the room, I found myself at a loss. I possessed no experience in such matters.
When I looked anxiously toward Chigusa, she spoke in a beguiling voice.

“To begin with, you may do whatever you please.” Continue reading →

10. No Humans Needed on the Bridal Aisle

Author: Kiki
Raw: https://novel18.syosetu.com/n2498fn/10/
Translator: Lilia v4
Editor: Yuriko AYA

After turning Nunnally into a vampire, Ellis and I decided to make ourselves at home in the church.
As Sisters, of course.
Nunnally appeared to have earned even more trust from the townspeople than I had imagined. On the strength of her introduction alone, no one questioned our presence.
Our red eyes and white skin were taken as mere peculiarities—which suggested that monsters known as vampires were not particularly well known in this world.
Then again, the only people who had even noticed Nunnally’s eyes changing color were the children who often came to play at the church. Perhaps the people of this town simply paid little attention to others’ appearances in the first place.

“Mmh … hah, shlurp … mrrh … slp … ”
“Does it taste good, Ellis?”
“Yesh … mmh, nnh … lick … delishush … ”

I sat on the bedroom bed with Ellis kneeling before me, sucking on my finger.
Her slick, lukewarm tongue coiled like a tentacle around the index finger I had slipped into her mouth, coating it in saliva.
This had not been my idea. Ellis had asked me to do it.
She must have been terribly envious of what I had done with Nunnally the other day, because she waited until we were alone and then begged me for a turn.
However—

“Shlurp … nnah, slrr … Shishter … ahh … ” Continue reading →

11. To Love You, I Would Let Both My Legs Rot Away

Author: Kiki
Raw: https://novel18.syosetu.com/n2498fn/11/
Translator: Lilia v4
Editor: Yuriko AYA

If I am going to enthrall someone anyway, I want to enjoy the process.
If I abandoned even that needless bit of pride, making someone mine would not be terribly difficult.
Now that I have begun to understand a vampire’s powers and how to wield the “shadows,” even breaking into a building is easy.
I can melt into the darkness and hide myself from every eye. With a trick like that at their disposal, perhaps it is only natural that vampires are called the rulers of the night.

I used that power to slip into the estate of a noble family called the Lindforgs, who lived in the northern part of the city.
The person I had come for was the family’s eldest daughter, Ainerinne Lindforg.
Apparently those close to her called her “Ai”—though she had only one or two people close enough to do so.
She was the very model of a haughty aristocrat. The moment she saw a commoner—or even a noble of the slightest lower rank—she looked down on them without a second thought.
Combined with her blonde hair, worn in twin tails of cascading ringlets, her personality was so overdrawn that I could almost mistake her for a character from a manga.

But even she looked adorable once she was asleep.
Her loosened blonde hair reminded me of Nunnally. Perhaps once Ainerinne became a vampire, she too would grow a little more demure.
With that hope in mind, I took the sleeping woman’s hand.
Thump, thump, thump.
The instant our bare skin touched, my power began to flow into Ainerinne.
She would fall in love with me as if in a dream.
When she awoke, I would no longer be there.
And yet, before she knew it, love for a stranger whose face she had never seen would have taken root in her heart.
You might call it a kind of bomb.
An exceedingly troublesome bomb that would burst the moment she saw me, flooding her with emotion.

“Ainerinne … no, Ai. I wonder what sweetly desperate side of yourself you’ll show me.” Continue reading →

12. And So, With Nowhere Left to Run, She Falls in Love

Author: Kiki
Raw: https://novel18.syosetu.com/n2498fn/12/
Translator: Lilia v4
Editor: Yuriko AYA

It was two days after I had turned Ainerinne into a Demi-Vamp.
I waited for Rellie in the chapel, where the setting sun streamed through the windows and dyed everything the color of twilight.
I had no recollection of arranging to meet her.
But I was certain.
Now that Ai—and her prospective mother-in-law, persuaded by Ai—had given their blessing to the marriage, Rellie would hurry straight to the church to share her joy with me.
I looked up at the statue of the goddess and smiled.
What could she be feeling as she gazed upon this church filled with inhuman creatures?
Did the fact that everything was proceeding so perfectly mean the goddess was blessing us?
Or was she lamenting her own powerlessness to do anything at all?
Not that I had the slightest intention of offering her a prayer.
It is not that I doubt the existence of gods, you understand.
But if the gods truly saved humans, then it would make no sense for me not to have been saved long ago.
Thus, I place no faith in them.
The happiness I possess now is the work of my own power. The goddess’s blessing has not the slightest thing to do with it.
So please, watch as best you can while I kill another human being—and make her happy.

“Chigusa!”

The doors flew open with a bang, and Rellie’s voice rang through the chapel.
I rose from the pew and opened my arms to welcome her as she ran toward me, sweat beading on her brow.
Rellie no longer rejected my physical affection.
She raced straight into my embrace.

“I did it! I really did it!”
“You succeeded in persuading Dick’s mother, then.”
“Mm-hm! His sister, who’s always been against it, came around to our side, and with Dick speaking up too, his mother finally said yes! It’s all thanks to you, Chigusa!”
“Not at all. Your feelings for each other simply got through to them.”
“Maybe, but to me, it’s all thanks to you!”

With that, she happily nuzzled her cheek against mine.
It was rather endearing—like having a pet dog take a liking to me.
She smelled faintly of sweat, but I liked that too.

“Still … hee hee. Did you truly need to hurry so much that you worked up a sweat?”
“I wanted to tell you the good news as soon as I possibly could. Things never would’ve gone this well without your advice.” Continue reading →

13. The Girls Sink into a Sea of Happiness

Author: Kiki
Raw: https://novel18.syosetu.com/n2498fn/13/
Translator: Lilia v4
Editor: Yuriko AYA

I sat alone in the chapel, now completely dark with no light coming in from outside.
The preparations were already complete. All that remained was to wait for the guest of honor.
Then I heard the door open, and the room that should have been pitch-black filled with light.

“Mistress, might you at least turn on a light?”
“Nunnally … Where is Ellis?”
“She is spending time with the others. You said we were free to do as we pleased until Rellie arrived.”

Looking more closely, I saw that Nunnally was flushed and perspiring.
It seemed that she and Ellis had been helping prepare our new companions.

“How was she?”

When I asked, Nunnally answered with a dreamy expression.

“Miri is thirteen, is she not? At first I was understandably cautious, but I have accepted her as one of us.”
“I am glad you can accept her. I expect she will live here at the church with us, so please be kind to her.”
“Of course. But … we have no habits made for children. We shall have to order one.”

Nunnally began arranging the matter in her head, though I wondered whether it was truly necessary.
An oversized habit would do for now, since they frequently changed clothes during their private rituals.

“… Rellie may arrive soon. I shall return to the room.”
“Then, when the time is right …”
“Yes. I am to bring the two of them here.”

Once we had confirmed the plan, Nunnally returned to the rear of the church.
I was alone once more in the now-lit chapel.
I understood that Rellie could not leave immediately after her fiancé’s death.
But she had to be searching desperately for someone to save her.
I had expected her to shake off every restraining hand and force her way to the church. Had I not poured enough power into her?
Judging from everything that had happened before, so much prolonged contact should already have made her ready to surrender body and soul.
Perhaps compatibility differed from person to person.
Even so, she had entrusted herself to me once already. There could be no doubt that she was very close to falling completely.

I passed the time staring down at my feet as they swayed idly.
In a space so quiet that I could hear the insects outside, I closed my eyes and waited patiently for approaching footsteps.
Now and then, faint voices carried from the rooms beyond, which made waiting somewhat difficult.
As I smiled wryly, I finally heard someone outside strike the ground at a run.
It appeared our leading lady had arrived at last.
I rose from the pew, stepped onto the long red carpet across the chapel floor, and waited for Rellie to appear beyond the doors.

“Hah, hah, hah …” Continue reading →

Interlude 1: Träumerei Never Ends — Part One

Author: Kiki
Raw: https://novel18.syosetu.com/n2498fn/14/
Translator: Lilia v4
Editor: Yuriko AYA

My world is very small.
All I can do is sit quietly in a dim room like a cage and look outside.
I hardly ever go out, so I have no friends. To me, my big sister Rellie is practically my whole world.
Father and Mother are kind, but their work does not seem to have been going very well lately, and they often argue when Rellie is away.
They never take it out on me, but they visit my room far less than they used to, and on the rare occasions when we talk, they can be terribly cold.
The way they look at me has grown cold too, and that hurts so much.

I take up only the tiniest bit of space, but it seems that even living requires me to have some value.
Then why was I born? I ask the stars that question every night, but no one ever answers.
It is because I do not shine.
People without value do not shine, so the stars surely cannot find me either.

If Rellie were not part of my family, she never would have found me.
It was not because I shone. She merely happened to be near me.
Without a stroke of luck like that, I could not even make someone notice me.
That is why I want to treasure what I have now. I do not want to lose Rellie.

“Rellie, why do you have to go …?”

But Rellie is going to marry Dick.
She will become part of someone else’s family, and all that will remain in this house are Father and Mother, who do not need me, and me, who is nothing but a burden.
I understand. Dick is rich, and once she marries him, things will surely become easier for our family.
In fact—ever since her marriage to Dick was settled, Father and Mother have stopped arguing, and even their eyes have grown warmer when they look at me.
But that only makes it hurt more.
Because whether I like it or not, it has shown me that my value to Father and Mother comes down to money.
Only Rellie has never changed.
As long as I have her, I need nothing else.

“Please don’t go, Rellie. Stay my sister forever—mine and mine alone—” Continue reading →

Interlude 2: Träumerei Never Ends — Part Two

Author: Kiki
Raw: https://novel18.syosetu.com/n2498fn/15/
Translator: Lilia v4
Editor: Yuriko AYA

Chigusa sat facing me, an unusually somber expression on her face.

“Everyone must know how starved for love Miri is.”

If they know, then why don’t Father and Mother love me the way they love my sister?

“Is that really true, I wonder …”
“Yes. Even I understood the moment I met you. They understand too, but none of them will answer your need because they lack the courage to bear that responsibility. It is shameful. At the very least, the parents who brought you into this world have a duty to do so.”
“But … it’s my fault I got sick, isn’t it? If I weren’t sick—if I could run around outside like other children—I wouldn’t have caused everyone so much trouble.”
“A family is supposed to embrace all of that along with you … though perhaps expecting so much is unrealistic. My own family was the same.”
“Yours too, Chigusa?”

I had not expected her to say that.
Chigusa held me with so much love that I had assumed she must have grown up surrounded by people who loved her too.

“No one loved me. If anything, they hated me for no reason. The one person who did love me was hurt by those who hated me, and in the end, that person came to hate me as well.”
“That’s awful. You’re so wonderful and kind, Chigusa.”

At my insistence, Chigusa smiled—troubled, but happy—and gently rested her forehead against mine.

“You and I are alike, Miri. Perhaps that is precisely why I was able to find you.”
“Alike …?”

But Chigusa and I were nothing alike.
She was so far beyond my reach that I could not understand why someone like her would take an interest in someone like me.
Still … Chigusa would never lie to me.
Maybe it was true.
If Chigusa had once been like me, then—

“Does that mean I can change too? Can I become someone wonderful like you?”
“You can. Once you are reborn, Miri, you should be able to reclaim your sister as well.”
“But you’re going to eat me, aren’t you?”
“Yes. But what I shall consume is the human called Miri. I am not going to kill you.”
“… What does that mean?” Continue reading →

14. Stopped Clock

Author: Kiki
Raw: https://novel18.syosetu.com/n2498fn/16/
Translator: Lilia v4
Editor: Yuriko AYA

No human being is completed alone.
Though innate gifts matter, it is one’s surroundings that ultimately shape one’s character.

First love.
The first betrayal.
A mother who abandoned her.
A father unstable in his emotions.
Classmates brimming with malice.
And me, pretending to be her ally.

Through all those days, the profoundly self-loathing personality called Chigusa Hinata was completed.

“—In other words, I, too, was an accomplice in killing that girl.”

With a self-mocking smile, I said this to the friend who listened earnestly to my story.
Yet she did not open her mouth; she merely listened.
Because the one answering was not her, but Reese: a bipedal black-cat doll that moved by itself atop the table.

“… You take too much upon yourself, Miyako.”

Reese spoke in a girl’s voice.
The one manipulating the doll—my friend—was Leia Hersig.
She was a witch who lived in the royal castle, and the very person responsible for summoning us to this world.
By “this world,” I mean that this is another world.
In this extraordinary world, where magic exists as though it had sprung from manga or anime, we were summoned as “saviors” possessed of powerful magical ability.
I do not understand the theory very well, but apparently people from other worlds can wield tremendous power when they come here.

“But Chigusa really did die before our eyes.”

The girl I had once cherished like a little sister was somehow slammed into the floor and torn apart the very moment she arrived in this other world.
Already confused after being surrounded without warning by glowing magic circles and sent to an unfamiliar world, several students and I were thrown into still greater confusion by the foul-smelling corpse lying close at hand.

“And … I could not even mourn her.”
“That was the kingdom’s failure. I am sorry from the bottom of my heart.”

The body was immediately taken away, and I later heard that it had been discarded at the dumping ground.
I was devastated.
Since coming to this world, we had been treated like heroes.
Anything we asked for was given to us.
In fact, the other students had surrounded themselves with several women in lavish rooms and demanded great quantities of jewels, indulging in every luxury.
… Only the perpetrators enjoyed such happiness, while the victim was thrown away like rubbish.
I could not accept such injustice.

“Even so, does Miyako really need to live so frugally? You should ask for more, and forget the things you dislike.”
“I can’t.”

And besides, how could a room with a canopy bed be called frugal?
The other students’ rooms were apparently still more luxurious, but if I wanted the same, I would be made to live near them whether I liked it or not.
Part of why I chose this room was to put as much distance as possible between them and me.

“If you do not, Miyako will only break.”

Leia said it as though casting me aside.
But her words did not reach my heart.

“That is all right. If no one else will repent for Ms. Hinata’s death, then I should bear every sin.”
“That is exactly what I mean by taking on too much.”

The doll’s soft hand stroked the head I had bowed.
Even as I enjoyed the feeling, I continued reproaching myself: it was wrong that I alone should feel any comfort.

Continue reading →

15. Forgotten Things

Author: Kiki
Raw: https://novel18.syosetu.com/n2498fn/17/
Translator: Lilia v4
Editor: Yuriko AYA

As Ms. Hinata held me, my thoughts were in complete disarray.

I had certainly seen her corpse.

When the five students and I were “summoned” into that room with its enormous magic circle, one girl had burst apart beside it—

Her body had been damaged, but it was a sight that still gave me goosebumps to remember. There was no mistaking that face. It had been Ms. Hinata’s.

And yet, why was she alive?

And why was she holding me?

“Ah … Ms. Hinata, is it really you? Weren’t you dead?”

“Please do not go killing me off on your own. As you can see, I am alive.”

Even after I pulled away to make sure, she was still Ms. Hinata.

Yet perhaps what unsettled me was the smile on her face: she had never shown me one since we were reunited at school.

“We needn’t talk while standing. Shall we sit down for the moment?”

“O-okay …”

I needed time to collect myself too.

At Ms. Hinata’s prompting, I sat beside her on a chapel pew.

Was I imagining the small distance she left between us?

Once seated, I took a deep breath and asked her again.

“Ms. Hinata, why are you in a place like this?”

“When I came to, I was in a place that looked like a rubbish dump. I woke up there and wandered through the town, but it was somewhere completely unfamiliar, and I had no one to turn to. The person who helped me was a sister from this church.”

“And you have been here ever since?” Continue reading →

16. The Reckless Battle of a Maiden in Love

Author: Kiki
Raw: https://novel18.syosetu.com/n2498fn/18/
Translator: Lilia v4
Editor: Yuriko AYA

When I left the church and returned to the castle, Leia was making herself at home in my room.
I did not remember giving her a spare key, but unlocking a door was doubtless effortless with her magic.
Watching her lie on my bed and idly kick her feet, she looked strangely young.
Judging by her appearance, Leia was probably about Chigusa’s age. Yet now and then she wore an oddly mature expression.
Surely she could not be older than I was. Still, people called her a witch—could I really assume she was the age she looked?

“Hello, Miyako. You’re back. We helped ourselves to your room first.”

The bipedal black-cat doll sitting on the table—Reese—rose to speak to me.
Leia slowly pushed herself upright as well, remaining seated on the bed as she watched me in silence.

“Going by that expression, you got a nice change of pace. My advice was right after all, wasn’t it?”

Reese puffed out its chest smugly.
I could not argue with it… though running into Chigusa had been pure coincidence.

“I’m not sure it was thanks to you, Leia, but it did clear my head. I think I’ll keep taking walks from tomorrow on.”
“I’m glad. Generally, I cannot recommend that a woman walk through the city alone, but I doubt you have anything to worry about, Miyako.”
“It still doesn’t feel real to me, but you’re right. I don’t think I could lose to just anyone anymore.”
“If anything, you must take care not to kill someone by misjudging your strength. By the way, Miyako, where in the city did you go today?”

I had expected it to ask.
But of course I would not tell them about Chigusa.
The kingdom wanted fighting power.
If they learned she was at the church, they might try to bring her to the castle.
And then—she would have to face the students again.
That would be far too cruel to do to her. It was not merely a matter of earning her trust.

“I only took a walk today, but I did pick out a few shops I want to visit after tomorrow.”
“Shops? Food? Clothes? Trinkets?”
“Food, I think.”

Clothes and trinkets interested me too, but I did not yet have the peace of mind to enjoy them.

“Then I recommend the confectioner’s on the main street. Their cream pie is simple, but it’s wonderful! The crust is crisp, it’s filled with fragrant cream, and if you have one fresh from the oven, well…!”
“…Do you want me to bring you some?”

Reese and Leia both shook their heads at once.
Apparently they did want some. I would make sure not to forget tomorrow.

 

◇◇◇ Continue reading →

17. Where There Is Light, There Is Shadow; Where There Is No Light, There Is Only Shadow

Author: Kiki
Raw: https://novel18.syosetu.com/n2498fn/19/
Translator: Lilia v4
Editor: Yuriko AYA

Ellis slashed apart the orb of light with her claws.
Unable to maintain its spherical shape, the mass of magical power suffered a spell collapse. It warped, exploded, released a shock wave, and vanished.

“Ghh!”

She shielded her eyes with an arm against the flash that filled her vision and braced her feet against the blast that threatened to fling her away.
Perhaps because she was exposed to the light, her skin prickled as though it were burning, though it was not quite painful.
Once the shock wave had eased somewhat, she sprang sideways to evade another orb that had already closed in from the front, then fixed her eyes on Leia.
It was the human who was casting the magic. Reese, the doll, was no more than a means of communication.
Ellis did wonder why Leia did not speak with her own voice—but she immediately discarded the thought.
There was no need to think about someone who was going to die anyway.

“Haaah!”

Ellis leapt at Leia.
She appeared to mean to take her head in a single swipe of her claws.
Though she saw Ellis coming, Leia did not even try to evade.
Was fear keeping her body from moving—or did she have some other means of defense?
Suspicious, Ellis nevertheless kept enough room in her thoughts to react at once if some spell intercepted her.

“So predictable. I suppose that is all you inhuman things ever are.”

The doll spoke.
Reese raised its cloth fist and stepped in front of Leia.

“You think a stuffed toy can stop me?!”
“I protect Leia. Otherwise, there is no point in my being Reese.”

Reese jumped and caught the claws descending toward Leia.
With a clang, as if metal had struck metal.
It was not ordinary cloth; magic had likely reinforced it.
Ellis retreated from the doll for the moment.
But Reese would not let her get away. The black-cat doll scurried toward Ellis on two legs, leapt, and threw punches in rapid succession at her face, stomach, and legs.

“Give it up. Dodging will not give you a chance!”

Ellis continued to evade Reese’s attacks by the narrowest margins.
But she knew there was no end to this if it continued.
Reese was not her only enemy. Leia had already created another orb of light and was about to send it at her.

“You are in my way!” Continue reading →

18. I Will Keep Calling It a Happy Ending

Author: Kiki
Raw: https://novel18.syosetu.com/n2498fn/20/
Translator: Lilia v4
Editor: Yuriko AYA

The next morning, after I woke, I received the news: a soldier’s body had been found outside the castle, and Leia had been discovered collapsed within it.
I had lain awake for a long time last night, lost in thought, and my body still felt heavy. But this was no time to complain.
I hurried to the room where Leia was resting and was relieved to find her looking better than I had expected.

“Thank goodness you’re safe, Leia.”
“Miyako …”

Her complexion was good, and she had no visible injuries.
Yet there was little strength in her expression, and her unsteady eyes watched me anxiously.
More importantly—

“Wait, Leia … you’re talking!?”

At my remark, Leia shyly covered her mouth with the blanket.
This might have been the first time I had ever heard her real voice.
I wondered whether someone had attacked her and destroyed Reese—but the black cat doll was sitting on the room’s table.
What had brought about this change of heart?

“I met Chigusa Hinata …”
“What …? Then was Ms. Hinata the one who attacked you? But why!?”
“Just as I told you yesterday, Miyako … had been affected by a charm. I think that vampire was … Chigusa.”

I had already guessed that Ms. Hinata was a vampire when Leia explained charm to me yesterday.
But that did not explain why she had entered the castle.

“There was another one with her. A vampire named Ellis. I think she was … after your life, Miyako. When I tried to stop her, Chigusa appeared.”
“She came to save her companion?”

Ellis was the girl who had called Ms. Hinata “Sister.”
If she had targeted me, then perhaps it was jealousy.
Ms. Hinata had called her merely a friend, but their closeness had not seemed like friendship alone to me.
Perhaps that was why she had come all the way into the castle to save her.

“Yes … probably. In the end, I was no match for her at all. Chigusa was so strong—nothing like the other vampires. If she had wanted to, she could have done something to you too, Miyako … But you were unharmed, so she did not come only to save Ellis.”

Leia hesitated to say the conclusion aloud.
But I understood well enough.
Chigusa had come to stop Ellis from killing me.

“Chigusa also … asked me to give you a message.”
“A message for me?”

Leia nodded without speaking.
It must have been humiliating for her.
Leia hated vampires deeply.
Vampires had destroyed her hometown, along with her family and closest friend.
Even so, because these were words that had to reach me, she took a long pause, wrestled with herself, and then clearly delivered Ms. Hinata’s message.

“I’m sorry. Thank you for everything, Mya-nee.”

The instant I heard those words, nostalgic feelings flooded my chest like overflowing snowmelt.
Feelings I had forgotten—feelings I had sealed away with my guilt—came rushing back all at once.

“Chigusa said it was goodbye. So … Miyako, you do not have to see her again.” Continue reading →

19. Let Us Drizzle Honey over Unripe Fruit

Author: Kiki
Raw: https://novel18.syosetu.com/n2498fn/21/
Translator: Lilia v4
Editor: Yuriko AYA

By its nature, a church receives visitors of every age and gender.
That had not changed even now that Demi-Vamps had taken it over. People continued to arrive, knowing nothing.
Lilina Lengland.
This innocent girl, far younger than I was and still of school age, was one of them.
In her case, however, she had only recently begun coming to the church.
For reasons I did not understand, she had grown remarkably attached to me and seemed to visit solely to see me.
She was a tremendously energetic child who begged, “Play with me, play with me!” whenever she came. I did not mind, so we often played together.
I would sit her on my lap while we read, chase her until she caught me in a hug, or hold her hand—all perfectly innocent.

“Big Sister, let’s play!”

And so, as on every other day, Lilina came to the church.
I welcomed her with a smile from the bottom of my heart.

 

◇◇◇ Continue reading →

20. Happy Family Plan

Author: Kiki
Raw: https://novel18.syosetu.com/n2498fn/22/
Translator: Lilia v4
Editor: Yuriko AYA

The following day, during another abusive encounter, the Mark appeared on a concealed part of Lilina’s body.
I deliberately pretended not to notice it and prolonged her conditioning for another three days, amused by the conflict between her remaining judgment and the supernatural influence imposed upon her.

On the third morning, a school holiday, Lilina came to the church as usual and threw herself into my arms.

“That means I can spend the whole day with you, Lilina.”

No one else had arrived. Taking advantage of our isolation, I prompted her to repeat the secret behavior I had taught her.
What followed is omitted. It was another calculated act of abuse intended to erase her boundaries and equate obedience with love.

When it ended, Lilina was disoriented but still desperate for my approval.
Her response showed how completely the charm and my conditioning had undermined her ability to recognize wrongdoing.

“Lilina loves you too. Hee-hee.”

The innocence that remained only strengthened my resolve to overwrite her humanity completely.
I had delayed long enough. It was time to transform her.

“Shall we go to my room?”
“Yes! Stay close to me all day, Big Sister!”

I took her eagerly offered hand and led her to the bedroom.

 

◇◇◇

Continue reading →

21. Let Us Fall in Love as Though Returning to the Womb

Author: Kiki
Raw: https://novel18.syosetu.com/n2498fn/23/
Translator: Lilia v4
Editor: Yuriko AYA

The Lenglands were the very picture of an ideal family.

Lilina’s father, Merrick Lengland, always devoted his days off to his wife and child, and routinely helped with the housework as well.
He kept the city safe as a soldier, and because he was employed by the kingdom, his pay was respectable.
Indeed, he was prosperous enough to build a home in the royal capital—where land prices continued to rise—at the age of thirty-two.

Lilina’s mother, Liza Lengland, was twenty-eight, four years younger than Merrick.
She was currently eight months pregnant.
Like Lilina, she wore her blond hair cut to her shoulders. She was a kindhearted woman who offered the same warm smile to everyone she met.
She kept the household in good order, and her cooking had improved greatly since her marriage. By now, Merrick looked forward to coming home every day.

Lilina loved both of her parents dearly.

At least, she had until the day she was changed into something inhuman.

After Chigusa saw her off, Lilina left the church and made her unsteady way home. Her body still carried the aftereffects of what had happened there.
In truth, she wanted to remain at the church—or even spend the rest of her life there, receiving Chigusa’s attention.
But she still had a task to complete.

Her mother was waiting at home, and Lilina loved her just as much as she loved her new companions.

“Mama should come over to this side too…”

She had to drag her in.

It was what Lilina wanted, and it was also Chigusa’s instruction.
There was therefore no reason not to see it through.
Her steps quickening, Lilina hurried home.

 

◇◇◇

Continue reading →

22. Blood and Flesh Make the Best Birthday Gift

Author: Kiki
Raw: https://novel18.syosetu.com/n2498fn/24/
Translator: Lilia v4
Editor: Yuriko AYA

Even after her father, Merrick, came home, Lilina showed no desire to leave Liza’s side.

She clung to her mother from behind as Liza stood in the kitchen, wearing a dreamlike expression.

“What’s gotten into you, Lilina? You’ve been awfully attached to Mama since yesterday.”

Knowing nothing, Merrick smiled as he spoke to his daughter. Lilina, however, no longer had the slightest interest in her father and gave no sign of answering.

Sensing the awkwardness, Liza tried to smooth things over with her husband.

“She says she had a frightening dream.”

“A dream, huh? Come to think of it, I haven’t had one in ages.”

“That just means you’re sleeping soundly. It’s a good thing.”

“Ha ha, perhaps so. A soldier’s body is his livelihood. I’m no use to anyone if I can’t sleep properly.”

Merrick drank his evening liquor and picked at the food served with it. He did not notice how his wife had changed since his return. Nor did he notice her trembling as she stood in the kitchen.

Out of his sight, Lilina was covertly exploiting the Mark on Liza’s swollen belly. It was the heart with demonic wings—the proof that Liza’s body had finished preparing to abandon its humanity.

Liza struggled to conceal the Mark’s overwhelming supernatural effect from her husband. Even a glance would have shown that something was wrong, but the pleasantly tipsy Merrick noticed nothing.

Even if he had, it was already too late. Lilina had long since ceased to be human, and Liza was completely in her thrall.

“Mama, who do you love more—Papa or Lilina?”

Lilina whispered so Merrick could not hear. Liza answered at once.

“Lilina. Of course it’s Lilina.”

“Who makes you happier—Papa or Lilina?”

“Compared with you, he doesn’t even—”

“Then we don’t need Papa anymore.”

“No … we don’t. As long as I have you, Lilina, I don’t need him.”

Lilina nodded in satisfaction, certain that her mother now belonged entirely to her.

Just then, Merrick abruptly stood. Liza stiffened at the thought of him seeing her expression, while Lilina looked almost as though she would not mind being discovered. If that happened, so be it. Merrick might have honed himself as a soldier, but Lilina was a Demi-Vamp and could kill him with ease.

“Off to the toilet …”

Instead, he left the room without so much as looking at them.

“Hee hee. Good thing he didn’t notice, Mama.”

“Lilina …”

The moment Merrick was gone, the strength left Liza’s body. She paused her cooking, gently removed Lilina’s arms from around her, and turned to face her.

“My, Mama. The instant Papa leaves, you can’t wait any longer.”

Laughing, Lilina accepted her mother’s corrupted affection. In the kitchen, the two crossed another forbidden boundary until Merrick was about to return. Liza understood how grotesquely the charm had distorted their family, yet she surrendered to it all the same. Continue reading →

23. Hatred and Love Are Equivalent

Author: Kiki
Raw: https://novel18.syosetu.com/n2498fn/25/
Translator: Lilia v4
Editor: Yuriko AYA

“Hmm …”
“What is it, Chii-chan?”

I lay with my head on Mya-nee’s lap, resting my index finger against my chin as I thought.
We were relaxing on a sofa in one of the rooms at the back of the church.
The matter before my internal council was simple: our growing number of companions had made the church rather cramped.

“I was thinking that it may be time for us to consider moving.”
“We have gained a lot of people. We’re all usually crowded together anyway, so it hasn’t been a problem yet.”
“… Speaking of which, you spent last night with Ellis, did you not? How was it?”
“How was it …? I can only say it was wonderful. Nunnally, Rellie, Miri, Ai, and Chelsea—everyone made me feel welcome.”
“I am glad to hear it.”

I exhaled in relief.
It seemed Mya-nee had completely adapted to life here as a Demi-Vamp.
… But enough of that digression.

“Returning to the matter of moving—”
“Oh, right. What should we do? Borrow Ai’s manor?”
“About that. Our family will only continue to grow, so I wondered whether we might as well seize somewhere truly grand.”
“Truly grand …?”

Mya-nee tilted her head. I looked her directly in the eyes and smiled fearlessly.

“The royal castle. If we mean to change the country—and the world—then taking over its greatest symbol would be the quickest way.”
“Do you mean to deal with the students who were transported here with us at the same time?”
“I do want to determine what should be done about them. More importantly—some seeds have already been sown.”

I closed my eyes.
The image that came to mind was the girl who had faced me on the night Ellis acted so recklessly.
That pitiable girl could speak to other people only through a doll named after her closest friend.
Come to think of it, Lina—the name behind that black-cat doll—sounded rather like Lilina. Yet Lilina’s heart was far stronger.
Leia’s heart was a fragile castle built on sand, ready to collapse at the slightest disturbance.
Even tonight, she was surely recalling what happened and suffering between the supernatural compulsion I had left in her and her bitter remorse.

Continue reading →

24. Believing We Will Meet Again Someday, I Will Keep Calling Your Name

Author: Kiki
Raw: https://novel18.syosetu.com/n2498fn/26/
Translator: Lilia v4
Editor: Yuriko AYA

Can human desire truly be so ugly?
Even though the world I came from had shown me that ugliness in vivid detail—and forced me to experience it firsthand—I could not help but frown when Ai told me what she had learned.

“An establishment beneath the city holds an event known as a slave auction. It is exactly what the name suggests: nobles bid as little as they can for slaves abducted from various places. A thoroughly vile form of entertainment.”

As a member of House Lindforg—and therefore a noble herself—Ai had apparently received invitations of that kind many times.

“I declined every invitation. Such things are not to my taste.”

For that reason, she had never attended one herself.
According to Ai, however, nobles who kept slaves were hardly uncommon. Like the people of the Discard District, slaves had no recognized rights and were subjected to appalling treatment.
Most of those put up for sale were very young girls. Boys were reportedly offered on occasion as well, depending on the buyers being catered to.
That distinction was beside the point. Once I had learned that human beings were being bought and sold, leaving matters alone would have been intolerable.
And so, on the night of the event, I dressed in a suitably aristocratic gown borrowed from Ai and made my way to the establishment.
The sun had long since set. It was dark outside—a most pleasant night.

 

Continue reading →

25. When I Learned the Truth, I…

Author: Kiki
Raw: https://novel18.syosetu.com/n2498fn/27/
Translator: Lilia v4
Editor: Yuriko AYA

Holding Reese in my arms, I walked through the castle.
I had been chronically short of sleep of late.
Even after waking, my mind showed no sign of clearing. I had set out for a walk in the hope that a change of pace might help, but—

“Man, even I’m finally getting bored. Guess it doesn’t matter how many girls you have—sooner or later, you get tired of them.”
“That’s because you overdo it all day long, Saiji.”
“You’re hardly any different, Taka. What about you, Oya? Starting to get bored yet?”
“…Not particularly.”
“Oh, right. Your situation was unusual, wasn’t it? Maybe I’ll go get myself someone new. If Ms. Mikage were here, I’d have gone after her.”
“…What about Sakuna?”
“I got tired of her ages ago. I’d rather choose one of the girls here.”
“Can’t argue with Saiji there.”

They passed me with coarse, braying laughter.
They were some of the six people I had summoned—or seven, if Chigusa was included.
The especially vulgar man who appeared to be their leader, with not a trace of intelligence in his expression, was Saiji Kataoka.
The slimmer but equally vulgar man perpetually at his side was Taka Kagan.
And the pale man who alone affected an air of cool detachment, though he was little different from the others, was Oya Chizaki.
Those were the only three men who had been summoned.
The two others still in the castle were girls named Sakuna Akizora and Toka Sato.
Sakuna had apparently once been in a relationship with Saiji. Perhaps it was a case of like attracting like, for her manner and conduct somewhat resembled his.
Toka was part of Sakuna’s entourage.
She was plain and quiet, which seemed to be precisely why Sakuna valued having her nearby as someone who made Sakuna herself stand out.
Toka, for her part, was comfortable in that position.
…Disgusting.
The humans I had summoned certainly possessed powerful magic, but—with the exception of Miyako—they were so base that I could hardly bear to breathe the same air.
Chigusa was no different.
She had sold her soul to a vampire, and she must surely be plotting to bring about another tragedy like the one that befell my village. Continue reading →

26. Simple Manipulation: Leave Them the Choice and Make Them Bear the Responsibility

Author: Kiki
Raw: https://novel18.syosetu.com/n2498fn/28/
Translator: Lilia v4
Editor: Yuriko AYA

Thinking back, I should have realized it from Chigusa’s clothes when we fought before.
The stronghold of a Demi-Vamp dressed in a robe resembling a nun’s habit was, quite literally, a church.
Then again—perhaps she had simply judged that it would not matter if I discovered where she lived.

“… By the way, Leia, is it all right for you to leave the castle without permission?”

I did not want to walk beside Chigusa, so I had been following a short distance behind her when she abruptly asked me that.
I frowned.

“You’re the one who brought me out here… Is that something you would normally ask?”
“I didn’t expect you to come along so readily.”
“It was practically a threat.”
“I had no such intention. Though if you had stubbornly refused, I was planning to use my shadows just a little.”
“… So you were going to threaten me.”

Using her shadows—what a terrifying thing to say.
This creature truly was inhuman.
Even the thought of them made my body react involuntarily.

“Come to think of it…”

I looked at her and suddenly noticed an alarming fact.

“The sun… doesn’t bother you?”

The sun was ordinarily a vampire’s weakness.
In fact—setting aside whether the culprit truly had been a vampire—the attack on my village had happened at night, and so had the attack the other day.
Naturally, I had assumed these creatures were weak against sunlight too.
Yet Chigusa was strolling calmly beneath it now. She looked a little warm, perhaps, but otherwise entirely unaffected.

“I am a Demi-Vamp, after all.”

Chigusa answered with a bright smile.
Once again, she casually said something horrifying.

“Sunlight is harmless to us. We can eat garlic, we appear in mirrors, and running water poses no problem. We can even live without drinking blood.”
“… That makes no sense.”

Could something like that even be called a vampire? Continue reading →

27. The Inhuman Being Called Human

Author: Kiki
Raw: https://novel18.syosetu.com/n2498fn/29/
Translator: Lilia v4
Editor: Yuriko AYA

Nothing is more unwelcome than kindness forced upon you.
Even if you try to explain that it is wrong, the other person will never stop believing that they are right.
That is why I cannot deny that what I am about to do is nothing more than selfishness.

There are two choices.
One is to accept Chigusa’s offer, turn Lina into a Demi-Vamp, and restore her body.
The other is to kill Lina with my own hands and let her life end as a human.

I have no way of knowing which one Lina wants.
Whichever I choose, it will surely be an act of selfishness.
Even the standard by which I make that choice will be nothing more than my own values.

Which is right: humanity or vampirism?
I came to Count Fenburg’s estate to find out.
He was the man who led the troops that rescued me from my ruined village. Immediately afterward, he retired from active service, and his son inherited the territory.
Apparently, he had always been close to the king. Now he lives quietly in retirement on the outskirts of the royal capital.
For a while after I first came to the capital, he acted as my guardian and looked after me.
That is why I affectionately call him “Uncle.”

Given our relationship, the guards let me into the estate without trying to stop me.
A maid immediately showed me into a drawing room.
I settled into a plush chair and sipped tea as I waited. A few minutes later, Uncle appeared.

“This is unusual. Leia, coming here without so much as a message.” Continue reading →

28. Engagement

Author: Kiki
Raw: https://novel18.syosetu.com/n2498fn/30/
Translator: Lilia v4
Editor: Yuriko AYA

“Welcome back, Leia.”

When I returned to the church, Chigusa greeted me in the chapel as if she had been waiting.
It had been a very long time since anyone had welcomed me home.
But I could not bring myself to answer, “I’m back,” so I passed her in silence.
The fact that I tensed up at the thought of offending her only made me feel small.

“Still haven’t found your answer?”

I paused before replying over my shoulder.

“ … I think I have.”
“But you still haven’t fully come to terms with it.”
“When someone suddenly tells you to stop being human … you can’t just say, ‘All right,’ and accept it. What was it like for you, Chigusa?”
“In my case, I had no time to hesitate over the choice. As you know, I did not regain consciousness until a vampire gave me life. Besides—”
“Besides?”
“I knew human ugliness better than most, and I had already lost faith in humanity. Even if my body had been whole, I doubt I would have struggled with the decision as you have.”

It was easy to guess that something had happened to her in the world she came from.
Given what her classmates were like, their school could hardly have been a decent place.
And people did not change merely because they came to another world.
They became corrupt, trampled others without remorse, and lived only to satisfy their own desires.
When their interests collided, they readily killed their own kind and betrayed their companions.
Vampires probably avoided that because their interests never conflicted.
They all faced in the same direction.
I did not know whether that deserved to be called love, but Chigusa and the others apparently called it that.

“But if you came back, then at least you’ve made your choice concerning Lina, haven’t you?”
“Yes …”

Which meant my own choice had effectively been made as well.
I had no intention of making Lina abandon her humanity while irresponsibly refusing to do the same.
I would remain with her to the end.
Even if I became inhuman.

“Um … I don’t know whether this is possible, but may I ask one thing?”
“Go ahead.”
“If someone has to drink my blood, I want it to be Lina … after she stops being human.”
“That is fine, though I will need to establish direct contact with Lina to transfer the power.”

My cheek twitched at the humorless joke.
Did she truly have to say that now?

“Please don’t be angry. I’m not teasing you; physical contact is necessary to transfer the power.”
“ … Does it have to be a kiss?”
“Not necessarily.”

“Then a kiss … is fine.”
“Don’t worry. I’ll make sure to leave her first kiss for you.”
“That isn’t what I meant.”

Chigusa giggled and headed deeper into the chapel.
Surprised that I could speak with her almost normally, I followed.

Continue reading →

29. A Warm-Up, or an Hors d’Oeuvre

Author: Kiki
Raw: https://novel18.syosetu.com/n2498fn/31/
Translator: Lilia v4
Editor: Yuriko AYA

Saiji Kataoka was bored.
He had been summoned to another world as a human with powerful magic, and in exchange for serving the kingdom he was permitted every imaginable luxury. He had always chased girls, and so—

“In that case, I wanna try having one of those harems.”

—he had said as much to the king, half in jest.
To his astonishment, several women of extraordinary beauty were provided the very next day, and they devoted themselves entirely to him.
But even beautiful companions grew tiresome once the novelty wore off.
He had tried including women who were not to his taste as well, but even that failed to relieve his boredom.
Surrounded on his bed by women left slack and vacant, Saiji stared into space and sighed.

“… Wish something exciting would happen.”

His boredom had only deepened because the person he found most stimulating had disappeared.
Her name was Miyako Mikage.
She was Saiji’s homeroom teacher—and, in his mind, merely a convenient instrument for satisfying his desires.
She had suited him well, and she had been a favorite toy, but a few days ago she had vanished from the castle without warning.
Even before that, despite being their homeroom teacher, she had refused to see any of her students at all.

“Maybe I oughta ask that old man to go bring her back.”

The “old man” was the king.
To Saiji, even the king was nothing more than a fat brute in human form.
Of course, the king and the summoned humans were using one another. Saiji suspected the king mocked them in turn as pigs drowning in their own appetites.
All the more reason to exploit him for everything he was worth—that was Saiji’s view.

“Well, I guess these’ll do to kill the boredom till then.”

Saiji picked up a pill from the shelf beside the bed, pulled a woman close, and forced it into her mouth.
Her eyes gradually went blank. Sweat broke out across her body, and she began to convulse.
Saiji grinned at the sight and shoved her roughly onto the bed.

 

Continue reading →

30. Painting Over Inhumanity—in Other Words, Soup

Author: Kiki
Raw: https://novel18.syosetu.com/n2498fn/32/
Translator: Lilia v4
Editor: Yuriko AYA

At a loss for how to spend his time, Saiji left the room at the far end of that floor and walked toward the barracks, intending to go to the dining hall.
Even outside mealtimes, one could at least get juice.
He could have ordered someone to bring the finest drinks to his room, but just then he wanted to be alone and take things slowly.

“Fuaaah…”

Saiji stretched his arms as far as they would go and yawned with his mouth wide open.
Perhaps because about two hours had passed since lunch, a pleasant drowsiness wrapped around him.
He might as well take a nap in the dining hall.
That plush bed in his own room somehow put him on edge, and the pillow was a little too high besides; it made it hard to breathe.
They were supposedly using the finest goods this world had to offer—and that, no doubt, was exactly why a commoner found them suffocating.

“‘Dilson’s Stew,’ huh… Come to think of it, the counter said something about that yesterday. What’s a Dilson, anyway? The name sounds kinda like a cow.”

The signboard in front of the dining hall listed another unfamiliar ingredient again today.
Yesterday’s meat had been good, so today’s would probably taste decent enough too.
Still, two days in a row at the dining hall was starting to feel stale; he might as well head over to the castle and get himself a lavish meal instead—he was thinking as much when he stepped inside and heard two familiar male voices.
He looked toward the speakers and found Taka and Oya there.
Saiji poured a yellow citrus juice from the neighboring pitcher into a waiting cup and carried it over to them.

“Yo. You guys bored too?”
“Oh, Saiji.”
“Nothing else to do… We were just killing time.”
“Then I’ll join you.”

So saying, Saiji sat down beside Taka.
As Oya had said, the conversation was idle—the sort of pointless talk typical of high-school boys, if one were being honest.
But even that kind of time now felt as distant as something he longed for.
No matter how much they could obtain, no matter that they had acquired so-called magic, they would never see their families again, and they would never follow the paths they had hoped for.
Whenever his thoughts turned negative, the fact would suddenly return to him, and a nameless sadness would well up.

“Hey… Think we’re ever gonna get to go home?”

Taka, who was usually so cheerful, spoke with a rare cloud over his face.

“… They’re not planning to send us back. At the very least, this country’s king is counting us as military assets.”
“They were gonna invade other countries or something, right?”

Taka frowned at Oya’s words.
Saiji thought:
Do whatever you want.
From the standpoint of someone who had been dragged into this and stripped of his future, it was utterly unreasonable.

“I just can’t picture it, y’know? Sure, they give us magic lessons now and then, but are we actually that strong?”
“If the king’s relying on us, then me, Taka, and Oya must all be outrageously powerful by this world’s standards.”
“… Talent worth dragging all the way from another world, huh.”

They simply did not yet know how to use it; they harbored a considerable amount of magical power.
In fact Chigusa, having become a half-vampire and absorbed that knowledge, had learned how to wield shadow magic and was already approaching a strength beyond that of any mage in the world.
Miyako and Leia, who had likewise ceased to be human, possessed power on a level with hers.
Of course, there was no way these three would know any of that—

“Well, whatever the circumstances, we’ll do what we want. We don’t owe anyone obedience.”
“Yeah. No matter where Saiji goes, all he does is chase women.”
“Even that’s gotten old. Ahh, isn’t there a decent woman lying around somewhere?”
“… So that’s where it ends up.”
“You never know. Someone out of the ordinary might suit you better. What about Chigusa?”
“She’s dead.” Continue reading →

31. A Migratory Fish Swimming Through Dreams—in Other Words, Poisson

Author: Kiki
Raw: https://novel18.syosetu.com/n2498fn/33/
Translator: Lilia v4
Editor: Yuriko AYA

Late on the night the room had suddenly appeared next door, Saiji woke in the small hours.
He ought to have been exhausted, yet he could not get to sleep. The knowledge that the room lay just beyond the wall was probably to blame.

“What the hell is an ‘ihai,’ anyway…? And I never did make it to Ms. Mikage’s room.”

Saiji pressed a palm to his forehead and shook his head from side to side, trying to rouse his still-muddled mind.
Sakuna had been just as bad. She had gone out of her way to come to him for advice, only to leave hand in hand with Toka the moment the other girl appeared.
In the end, Sakuna must have had those inclinations all along and merely been confused because she had recognized her own feelings for the first time.

“… Girls together. Disgusting. God, what a turnoff.”

Once his eyes were fully open, he found it difficult to fall asleep a second time.
Saiji sat up, intending to drink some water and change his mood.

Scratch, scratch, scratch, scratch—

Then he heard a strange sound.
It was as though something were scraping at the wall.

“Maybe there’s a bug in here…”

Running a hand through his disheveled hair, Saiji poured water from the waiting thermos into a glass and drained it at once.
It was not especially hot, but sleep inevitably left a person dehydrated.
As he felt the water spread through his body, he exhaled. “Whew.”

Scratch, scratch, scratch, scratch…

All the while, the strange sound continued without pause.
It was quiet in itself, but its endless repetition soon became irritating.

“If that’s some mating call, go do it somewhere else. Damn it.”

As if taking out his mounting frustration, Saiji punched the wall in the direction of the sound.
At that moment, he realized something.
What lay beyond this wall—was that not the room with the ihai?

“You’ve got to be kidding me.”

Saiji’s expression stiffened.
The only word ihai brought to mind was a single Japanese one: a mortuary tablet.
Of course, this was another world, and there was no reason the same word should exist here. But once the association had occurred to him, he could not erase the image.
Sakuna had behaved as though the room had always been next door. An auditory hallucination would have been one thing, but there was no possible way he could be mistaken about that.
His room had unquestionably been the last one at the end of the hall.
There had never been another room beside it.
That being so, Saiji’s suspicion that neither the neighboring room nor the object called an ihai was anything normal was almost certainly correct.

Scratch, scratch, scratch, scratch—scratch… scratch, scratch—

The rhythm changed from time to time, and the sound went on as though a living person were carving at the wall.
Saiji swallowed, cold sweat beading on his brow as he glared at it.
Should he go?
No. It could still be nothing more than an insect. There was no need to force himself to learn the truth.
Fear outweighed everything else, enough to make him despise himself as a coward.
Or perhaps it would be more accurate to call the feeling a survival instinct.
Yes. That had to be it.
Repeating that to himself, he crawled back into bed.
He pulled the covers over his face, trying to shut out as much of the sound as possible.
The scratching continued until dawn, as though it were calling to Saiji.

◇◇◇ Continue reading →

32. You Are the Hero of the Story—Truly, the Viande

Author: Kiki
Raw: https://novel18.syosetu.com/n2498fn/34/
Translator: Lilia v4
Editor: Yuriko AYA

“Uwaaaaaaagh!”

Saiji bolted upright and screamed the instant he awoke.

“Hah… hah… hah…”

His shoulders heaved with every ragged breath. Forgetting even to blink, he stared wildly around him.
This was—his room, and his body lay on the bed.
He had been certain he was dead.
He had felt the pain, and he had unmistakably felt his body growing cold.
Yet his arms and legs were attached.
So was his head, of course.

“Was it… a dream?”

It had been so real he wanted to call that idea ridiculous.
But since he was lying here in his own room, there seemed to be no other explanation.
If so, which parts had been real, and when had he fallen into the dream?
Saiji clutched his head.
He had no idea. He could not even begin to guess where reality ended and the dream began.
He wanted it all to have been an illusion.
But the moment Saiji formed that wish, he heard that sound from the wall behind him.

Scratch, scratch, scratch, scratch—

His entire body went rigid, gripped by tension as fierce as a hand closing around his heart.
He forgot not only to blink but even to breathe. He hunched forward with a hand pressed to his chest.
Tears threatened to spill from his eyes.
What in the world was this?
Who was doing it, and for what? Why did he have to be caught up in it?
Nothing came to mind.
Nothing at all. Saiji had never once thought of himself as a sinner.

Scratch, scratch, scratch, scratch—

The unnatural sound continued as though rebuking him.
It would go on until Saiji’s repentance was accepted.
Or until he went mad.

“Screw this… You piece of shit!”

Saiji flung the sheet aside, climbed out of bed, and strode from the room.
He was heading, of course, for the room that held the ihai.
If the cause of the sound was in there, he intended to beat it senseless and send it flying.
Even if his fists proved useless, Saiji could wield a little magic.
He would simply blast it away.
For some reason, the door was unlocked. Saiji opened it and stepped into a vast room that was, otherwise, nothing at all.

“…!”

He had assumed no one would be there.
Instead they stood stock-still, as if waiting for him.
Four men.
Their heads were bowed, and the room was dark, so he could not see their faces clearly. Judging by their appearance, however, they were probably soldiers who worked at the castle.

“Wel… come.”

The soldier on the far right spoke in a rasp and pointed in a particular direction.

“To the… ihai.”

The soldier beside him continued.

“Together… everyone… the whole time.” Continue reading →

33. Dessert After All, to Cleanse the Palate of Bitter Memories

Author: Kiki
Raw: https://novel18.syosetu.com/n2498fn/35/
Translator: Lilia v4
Editor: Yuriko AYA

A dim prison beneath the castle.
Saiji was in a cell divided off by iron bars, furnished with nothing but a moldy bed and a toilet.

“I’m not wrong. I’m not wrong. I’m not wrong. I’m not wrong.”

His eyes were wide, his cheeks were gaunt, and he had not slept at all since the previous night. He only repeated the same words.
By any measure, he had gone mad.
Even so, Saiji remained utterly convinced that he was right. He believed just as firmly that the knights under the king’s direct command—the ones who had locked him in this cell—had already been brainwashed by “them.”
That was why he refused the meals they brought him.
He was certain they contained human flesh.

“I’m not wrong. I’m not wrong. I’m not wrong. I’m not wrong.”

When the knights questioned him about why he had put poison in the food, he would not even tell them his reason.
He did nothing but repeat the same phrase, making communication all but impossible.
The only evidence left behind was the poison he had used and the small vial that had held it.
No one had ever heard of a poison capable of dissolving a body after only a small dose. An unknown poison naturally cast suspicion first upon Leia, a researcher, but she had a perfect alibi.
In other words, they still knew nothing.
The knights would probably never reach the truth.
They lacked the ability—and, more importantly, they would probably run out of time.

As Saiji sat with his knees drawn to his chest, he heard footsteps approaching.
There was more than one person, unlike the knights who delivered his meals.
But it made no difference to him who had come. He continued his chant like a prayer.
The visitors stopped in front of his cell and addressed him.

“It has been a while, Mr. Kazeoka.”

Only one of the summoned people would call him by that surname.
Yet the voice belonged neither to the surviving Sakuna nor to Toka, much less Miyako.
Wondering who else it could be, Saiji raised his head slightly and caught sight of them at the edge of his vision.
Sakuna, Toka, and … someone he did not know.
No—that face was familiar, and when he thought carefully, so was the voice.
But if she were the girl Saiji remembered, some condition should have kept her facial muscles constantly twitching. Her voice should have been hoarser. Above all, she should never have worn such a confident expression.
Then who was this? What was this person standing before him and looking down upon him? Continue reading →

Interlude 3: An Unremarkable, Beloved Everyday, for Example Café Boutiful

Author: Kiki
Raw: https://novel18.syosetu.com/n2498fn/36/
Translator: Lilia v4
Editor: Yuriko AYA

Ever since I obtained this body, I have scarcely had to worry about being oppressed by anyone, or about facing a difficulty I could not overcome.
My beloved companions have increased in number as well, and the plan is proceeding smoothly.
I am happy. I am fortunate.
And yet that very fortune has given rise to a new sort of worry.

“Hmph … I never thought I’d end up fighting Nunnally in earnest in a place like this.”
“I am quite surprised myself, Ellis. But since we have each staked something precious, I can hardly withdraw.”
“I feel the same way … Now get ready, Nunnally!”
“I am ready whenever you are!”

The two of them had abruptly begun fighting right in front of me. I watched from a luxurious, plush chair prepared as the best seat in the house, wearing a troubled expression.
Good grief. How on earth had it come to this?

Continue reading →

34. The Strongest and Worst of Humans

Author: Kiki
Raw: https://novel18.syosetu.com/n2498fn/37/
Translator: Lilia v4
Editor: Yuriko AYA

“After that, if we can just… do something about the eight knights, the country would be as good as finished, wouldn’t it?”

Leia had told me as much a little while ago.

“The only knight stationed at the castle, the one who guards the royal family—her name is Lily Clearlights.”
“She was the knight who defeated Camilla, as I recall.”
“Yes. And she’s the captain of the knighthood, too. But that person… I think she’s probably weaker than I am. If it were you, Mistress, I believe you could beat her easily.”

In other words, the reasoning seemed to be that if Lily, the captain, was only that strong, the other knights ought to be no trouble either.
And so I issued the following order to the king, whose brain I had already toyed with until he was a puppet.

“Gather every knight at the castle.”

Rotten-brained or not, he was still a king. At that single word, the knights scattered across the kingdom assembled at the castle all at once.
Even so, there was one who arrived late.
He was the man riding in the carriage running ahead of me: Saints Judgment, who called himself “the human most beloved by God in all the world.”
The name was so blatant I suspected an alias, but it was apparently his real one.
His family had been deeply devout for generations, I was told.
There is no such thing as God in this world, however, so I decided to dispose of him promptly and turn him into a puppet as well.

I moved from the shadow of grass to the shadow of trees, closing the distance to the carriage.
At last I slipped into the shadow directly beneath it.
From there, Saints’ voice reached me.
When I shifted a little, I could see inside the carriage as well.
Saints had the look of a somewhat slender, thoroughly ordinary priest.

“By the by, coachman.”
“Y-yes?”
“Do you… believe in God?”
“God, sir? Well, I believe well enough.”
“I see, I see. How fine. You are truly fine. Lately, I am sorry to say, the number of rude people who do not believe in God has increased. A lamentable thing. Truly lamentable.”

Paying no mind to the coachman’s bewilderment, he launched into a sermon of a conversation.
He was rather like a troublesome passenger pestering a taxi driver.

“However! If you are a righteous man who has faith in God, then I, beloved of God, have a duty to act in His stead. In short, I must save you.”
“Uh… right…”
“Listen well, young man. Stop the carriage at once. Then get down, and—let me see—run until you are somewhere beyond the horizon.”
“Huh? W-why?”
“Do not talk back! I am telling you to run!”

The young coachman startled at the force of that voice.

“Eek!? I understand!” Continue reading →

35. Eight Knights and a Lonely Princess

Author: Kiki
Raw: https://novel18.syosetu.com/n2498fn/38/
Translator: Lilia v4
Editor: Yuriko AYA

Inside the royal castle, in a stone room ordinarily used for the soldiers’ briefings, the knighthood that was the kingdom’s pride stood assembled in full.
It was rare for them, usually scattered across the land, to gather in one place like this.
Was war about to break out at last, or had the other side already made the first move?
Convinced that an emergency of one kind or another must be underway, they had rushed back to the royal capital—and yet—

“Haaah? You don’t even know the reason!?”

Ashera Foshanza spat it out without bothering to hide her irritation.
She had blood-red hair tied back, eyes of the same blood-red, and from the legend that any battlefield she entered became a sea of blood, she was called the Crimson Battle Fiend.
Whether the rumors were true or not, the strength with which she swung an enormous axe as tall as she was was certainly beyond the human.

“Don’t screw with me. I ain’t got time to waste. Bring out the king. The king!”
“Do calm yourself, Ashera. Lily is at a loss, is she not?”

Lalilalai Avota rebuked Ashera in a gentle voice.
Unlike Ashera, from whom roughness seeped even from her appearance, Lalilalai’s silver hair, ample figure, and mild expression suggested a tranquil person.
Her generosity was such that she was called the Madonna of the Kingdom, and the soldiers adored her in more than one sense.

“Well, well, Lalilalai, still as big-hearted as ever. That’s our Madonna of the Kingdom for you—the sex-mother herself.”
“Madonna is far too grand a title. I merely wrap as many people as I can in love, so that they may be happy.”
“That’s a roundabout way of saying you’ll spread your legs for anyone, you whore.”
“Oh my, I do not sell my body. I am always happy to do it free of charge, you know?”
“That makes it even worse!”

Ashera glared; Lalilalai’s smile did not falter.
Whenever the two of them met, it was always like this.
Watching them, Lily, captain of the knighthood, clutched her head and heaved a long sigh.
I ought to stop them here—so she thought, and yet her voice would not come.
Even if someone like Lily spoke up, these two would not stop.
While she dithered over it, another member opened her mouth first.

“Gahahaha! Ashera’s still as savage as ever! Don’t waste it in here—come keep me company later!”
“Tch… Don’t stick your oar in, David.”
“You ought to be thanking him for stopping you. You two will never see eye to eye, and an endless quarrel would be a nuisance.”
“You stay out of it too, Madis. I get it, all right?”

The two men belonging to the knighthood—David, distinguished by a huge frame some two meters tall, and Madis, who wore a white coat and glasses and looked every bit the intellectual—each cut in.
Told off by the familiar David and the cool-headed Madis, even Ashera, wild horse that she was, had no choice but to fall silent.
Watching the exchange, Narkil, who had been looking on from the side, gave a wry smile. Continue reading →